Chapter 163: Ash’s path
"You reek of blood again... who was it this time?" Serena asked softly, her voice calm and composed beneath the hood that covered her face.
"Just a scum," Ash replied, his tone flat and unbothered, as if it had become nothing more than a part of his daily routine.
Serena didn’t flinch at the answer. Instead, she calmly handed him a folded piece of parchment.
"Here. Another list. These are a few more corrupted officers who have been stealing public funds and exploiting the helpless."
Ash took the list, glanced at the names once, and said casually, "I’ll be right back."
And just like that, his figure vanished, disappearing as if the wind had carried him away.
Serena stood silently for a few seconds, her eyes fixed on the place where Ash had been standing just moments ago.
Sigh... He’s nothing like the person I had imagined him to be.
It had all started three weeks ago, when Ash began experimenting with the life magic spells he had developed. But casting healing spells in theory and applying them in practice were vastly different matters.
Without real injuries or patients, he had no way to refine his technique, no way to push his understanding further.
So, without telling anyone, Ash turned to the forest. He found small animals, inflicted light wounds—never anything fatal—and healed them again. He repeated the process over and over, watching, adjusting, learning.
But Serena had sharp senses. One evening, she caught the faint but unmistakable scent of dried blood and crushed herbs on Ash’s clothes.
Her nose, attuned to even the subtlest changes in the air, picked it up instantly. And since clothing wasn’t a part of Ash’s body, the Rune of Concealment didn’t mask it, and at that time Absolute concealment was off.
When she asked, Ash had no choice but to tell the truth. He explained that he was using a mix of magical healing and natural herbology on wounded animals to better grasp the application of life magic in real scenarios.
That moment triggered something in Serena. A desire she had never dared act on.
She, too, wanted to test her life magic. She wanted to use it not just to grow flowers or sense auras, but to actually save people.
To heal real injuries. But as the Elven Queen, she could not simply walk out of her land without raising alarms. The council monitored her closely, and every step was under scrutiny.
That was when Ash offered to help.
It wasn’t purely out of kindness. He had seen potential in her. And if her strength continued to grow, it would eventually work in his favor as well.
She could prove useful when it came to solving the problem of the World Tree—and the stronger she became, the more reliable she would be when things inevitably went wrong, as Ash was certain they would.
So Ash paid a visit to Solareth and requested a special artifact: one that could create a clone embedded with a fragment of the user’s memories. One strong enough to fool even Saints.
And Solareth, while grumbling under his breath and complaining like always, still ended up lending him the artifact. He didn’t forget to throw in some sharp words, but Ash had learned to ignore those by now.
Before letting him leave, Solareth also shared a piece of news—something that made Ash pause for a moment.
Apparently, the dragons had completely wiped out the group of humans who had landed on the Dragon Continent, as well as those stationed on the nearby island. Although a small number might have managed to escape, the vast majority had perished.
According to Solareth’s information, the battle between the dragon elders had taken place far away from the coastal areas. Because of that, no one near the shores had any idea a war was unfolding beyond their reach.
As for the humans positioned further inland, they never got the opportunity to send any messages or warnings to their companions on the island.
That was because the young dragons had sealed off everything. No communication, no transport, nothing went in or out once the decision was made. That was the true reason no one was able to escape.
Ash didn’t react much to the news. He simply nodded and returned without saying a word.
Though it was true that everything had started because of him, he didn’t feel guilt gnawing at his heart. He had seen enough of the world to know how things worked. In the end, it was human greed that brought them here, and they also knew the risk of the work.
Still... his mind wandered for a moment.
He couldn’t help but think of the four acquaintances he had made during his journey. He had shared brief moments of trust and conversation with them. Now, whether they had lived or died, he couldn’t say. That uncertainty weighed on him, even if only slightly.
But he knew there was nothing he could do about it now. So he left that thought behind for the time being.
On the other hand, Serena used the artifact to make her clone and sneak out from the Elven continent without raising suspicion.
She traveled to different regions under a different name, healing the poor, the sick, and the forgotten—people who had long stopped hoping for help.
Ash did the same, though they both chose to work in separate regions to avoid drawing attention. Ash had given her a teleportation anchor point, and a communication artifact in case she was in trouble.
As time passed, their control over life magic deepened through practice. But their travels uncovered more than just patients.
They discovered rot—deep and widespread corruption, stolen funds, underground networks trafficking goods and people, and powerful individuals who fed off the weak like leeches in the dark.
Ash decided then that healing wasn’t enough. He needed to eliminate the ones responsible.
One by one, the corrupt officials disappeared.
The wealth they hoarded? Donated—quietly, anonymously—to orphanages, shelters, and slums that had long been ignored by the world.
Serena didn’t stop him. In fact, she supported him. She helped gather intel, identify the criminals, and organize what little resistance the people could offer.
And perhaps for the first time in a long while, she felt like her power was actually helping someone. Not as a Queen. But as a person.
At first, I thought he was suspicious... but as time passed, that feeling slowly turned into awe... and then into respect and admiration.
Who are you really, Mr. Unknown?
Why are you helping people everywhere?
It was a question she asked everyday, but she never got the answer.
***
Around half an hour later, Ash returned.
Serena, who had been sitting on a large flat rock with a book open in her lap, lifted her gaze to meet him. Her expression didn’t change, but her thoughts stirred quietly.
Is he using that strange concealment skill again? The one he always uses...
Ash almost never dropped his concealment. The Absolute Concealment skill wrapped his presence in a veil so perfect that even her sharpened senses couldn’t feel him until he allowed it.
It was only when his mana was drained after long hours of practice that the concealment would falter—just like it had that one time when she caught the faint scent of blood and herbs clinging to his clothes.
Ash stepped closer and without giving her a chance to say anything, he gently placed a hand on her shoulder and, in his usual calm and composed voice, said, "Let’s go."
The teleportation activated instantly.
It cost him twice the mana compared to traveling alone, but he didn’t seem to care.
Ash wasn’t just trying to heal Elysia or save the world out of some abstract sense of duty.
No... he had seen enough of the world’s ugliness to know its weight firsthand. The silent suffering of children, the cruelty of forgotten places, the emptiness that crept into your bones when no one came to help.
He didn’t want another child to endure what he had once endured.
That was when he realized where his path lay.
After dropping Serena back at her designated place, Ash reappeared in a quiet cave nestled far away from any signs of human life. The only sound was the occasional drip of water echoing in the stillness.
He looked around at the dimly lit walls and sighed.
"There really are so many scums rotting this society from the inside..."
His voice was calm, but there was a tiredness behind it.
And yet, he had also come to understand something important.
"No matter how strong I become, I can’t be everywhere. I can’t protect everyone alone. I can’t cleanse every corrupted root with my hands alone."
The thought lingered heavily.
"Should I start an organization? But finding people who won’t betray me... that’s going to be a real headache."
Still, it was a seed planted in his mind.
For now, though, his attention returned to what mattered most—healing Elysia.
"My control over healing spells and life magic has improved, and the spells I’ve created are working well so far," he said, almost to himself, "but I still don’t know how to handle Life Force entanglement. Without that understanding, I can’t risk it... I need proper teachings."
And there was only one being who might hold the knowledge he sought.
"The World Tree... If we succeed in saving it, I’ll ask it to teach me everything it knows about healing."
His eyes narrowed with quiet resolve.
With that decision made, he removed his outer clothes and stepped toward a spring nestled into the back of the cave.
A faint hum of lightning danced at his fingertips, and the surface of the water rippled slightly as the temperature rose to a perfect, comforting warmth.
He stepped into the spring, letting the heat wrap around his tired body. The aches from days of travel, combat, and practice slowly began to fade.
Leaning back against the smooth stone, his arms resting along the edge, Ash closed his eyes.
"Let’s rest for now. Tomorrow, we begin the real task—saving the World Tree."
***